There’s no better time to look towards a fresh start than spring time. It’s the perfect opportunity to spring clean your house, mind and life. Whether it is spring where you live or not however, you can take action with these five easy ways to spring clean your life, starting now!
De-clutter your home
Let’s start this journey by focusing on the space that you wake up to each morning – your home. A household that is messy and in disarray can cause added stress to your life.
Clear out your wardrobes and cupboards. Wash blinds and curtains, wipe the dust from walls and surfaces. Clean out the pantry, removing winter comfort food and stocking it with healthy choices.
Make your space beautiful – a new rug, cushions, candle or even fresh flowers can dramatically change the energy of a room. The chi (energy) within your home will flow better. Create an environment that uplifts your spirits.
Clear your mind
Your mental health is boosted when you de-clutter. This involves dealing with anxiety, stress, worry and other negative emotions.
Many of us hold onto negative emotions such as jealousy, anger, hatred, worry or fear. These emotions don’t add anything to your life and are detrimental to your health and wellbeing. Stop giving your energy away to someone else and focus on giving it back to you.
Clear your schedule
It’s time to clear your diary and make time for priorities. To follow your dreams and live the life you want, you need to make time for things that are important to you.
Push beyond your comfort zone, the easier path isn’t always the right way for our higher learning and growth. Maybe it’s time to take the road less travelled. Engage in activities you’ve never done before, are passionate or curious about, or that fulfil a purpose or dream.
Time is precious and valuable, make every minute count by making time work for you. Plant the seeds today for a better tomorrow.
Don’t sweat the small stuff
With our busy lifestyles, we are too stressed to deal with the things that make us feel stressed! It could be our overwhelming to-do list, or the constant mind chatter that preoccupies our thoughts.
A calmer presence can be found when you stop over-analysing everything, become less rigid and ‘go with the flow’.
Smile yourself out of a bad mood. Your brain cannot tell the difference between a posed smile and a genuine one – they have the same result.
Detox your relationships
Moods are infectious, and are not only affected by our own emotions and inner conflicts, but also by those whose company we keep.
Toxic relationships zap your energy (in my clinic, the term I use is energy vampires). Don’t underestimate how much energy vampires can affect not only your mood, but your self-esteem.
By embracing change and letting go of the stagnant energy in your life, you create space and invite possibility, fulfilment, adventure and the opportunity to follow your dreams. Make the all-important decision to detoxify and de-clutter in all aspects of your life. There’s no better time than spring time.
About the writer Luke Sheedy is a gifted life advisor, motivator and free thinker. He combines his metaphysical talents to advise clients on their natural strengths, talents and abilities. Luke helps release what is holding you back, so growth can occur and your life’s plan can unfold naturally.
It’s a haven for foodies, market-lovers and families – The Grounds in Alexandria is one of the hottest café spots to experience and workout your tastebuds in Sydney. Located in an old pie factory from the 1900’s, The Grounds is now a whimsical secret garden that has a rustic/industrial feel. From the outside you never expect such a sanctuary to exist – a lovely surprise making you feel like a kid in a candy store, wide-eyed and excited to explore. On any given weekend The Grounds is jam-packed with visitors, especially over the ‘holiday weekends’ which hosts sprawling market stalls and live music.
Here’s why it’s a perfect spot to check out – explore The Grounds of Alexandria
Kevin Bacon calls it home
Unfortunately not the actor, but The Grounds has its own Kevin Bacon celebrity – a lovable pig who made headlines all over the country for being kidnapped last year. He is now safely back home and can be seen lapping up the attention in his barn. Along with Kevin Bacon, there are sheep, chickens, ducks, rabbits and more in the petting zoo area.
Greenhouse garden dining
For a dining experience that’ll make you feel like you’re in a greenhouse garden, drop by The Potting Shed. With hanging plants, flowerpots and garden tools everywhere, this venue is one of a kind. It also features a funky bar offering an extensive cocktail list and wine menu. The venue even has its own resident pet, Fluffy, a magnificent blue and yellow macaw that is perched freely on top of its cage and playing happily amongst the diners. What’s great about The Potting Shed is it’s open till midnight and the food is scrumptious, and surprisingly well priced. Some highlight dishes include the steamed black mussels, bite-sized pork-belly buns and buttermilk popcorn chicken. On the beverage side be sure to try a cocktail – my drink of choice is the Toiler’s Tonic.
Coffee is their passion
The Grounds is renowned for its coffee and it would be a sin if you didn’t get your caffeine fix here. With a coffee research and testing facility on-site – they mean serious business when it comes to brewing the perfect cup of coffee. Sourcing the finest beans from all over the world including Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia and India, The Grounds constantly change blends (largely determined by seasonality) to ensure the best-flavoured coffee is produced.
Tip: While waiting for a table at The Potting Shed, grab a coffee and sit in the main garden area.
Eat your heart out
On premises is the Salt Meats Cheese venue, a warehouse-style delicatessen offering the finest products stocked sky-high – from olives, antipasto, dips, truffles, prosciutto, cheeses, jams, gelato, pasta and more. It’s a gourmet foodie’s dream but it doesn’t stop there, with Italian cooking classes also available to indulge in. Each weekend they run classes in making fresh pasta and ravioli, woodfire oven pizzas (matched with a glass of wine) and mozzarella. It’s a great activity for families, friends and groups – bound to produce a lot of laughs and tasty treats in the process.
Find The Grounds of Alexandria at Building 7A/2 Huntley Street, Alexandria
Have you explored The Grounds of Alexandria? Tell us what you think.
About the writer
Danielle Muller (@stuffitgotravel) is a Sydney-based travel blogger and communications professional. Follow her travel adventures, stories and recommendations at stuffitgotravelling.com.
Has a song ever inspired you to travel? Or alternatively, do you relate a particular track (or even album) to a travel experience? I remember on my first big trip ever when my brother and I headed over to North America and Canada, I had a really good listen to Savage Garden’s Affirmation as we journeyed across British Columbia on board the SkyTrain. The beautiful anthems behind some of the tracks on the album formed a soundtrack which set the scene for me: stunning snow-capped mountains reaching into rainy skies, vast woods broken into parts by deep, eerie lakes, and a spectacular evolving landscape of green, aqua and earthy tones which rolls beyond Vancouver’s city limits. It sticks in my mind and is often something I call upon when reflecting on my most memorable travel experiences; and of course, any time I hear that music I’m transported back to the SkyTrain within a drizzly yet sublime space in time. Music and travel – such a special combination.
A few years ago too, Cooper and I were sitting in a bar in Barcelona – ironically, an Aussie-themed establishment called Hogans. As we ordered tapas and gazed happily upon Las Ramblas in the centre of a wonderful city we’ve come to love, we heard Olly Murs’ Troublemaker for the first time. We liked it instantly, but aside from generally enjoying the song’s fun melody, it was from then on always associated with an adventure en España.
Music and travel – is it just me?
These are a mere two of my examples, so it’s unsurprising that I was intrigued when travel website, Wotif, sent me survey results to consider which touched upon other travellers’ emotive music and travel experiences. They found that while only 39 per cent of participants surveyed said a song had actually inspired them to make real plans to travel, 77 per cent said that emotions brought about by music do generate a desire to get out into the world. Interestingly the tops songs with this impact included Leaving On a Jet Plane (Jen Denver), New York, New York (Frank Sinatra), On the Road Again (Willie Nelson) and another ode to NYC which yes, often makes me feel like catching a flight to JFK, Empire State of Mind (Jay-Z and Alicia Keys).
The survey also found that particular cities or destinations most pined for following musical triggers are New York, Australia, California, America and Paris.
Indeed, 54 per cent of survey participants said they associate a particular song with a holiday memory and 99 per cent of respondents said this was a good thing, that is, a nice memory association to keep hold of.
It seems most travellers associate songs with either an epic road trip or adventure (25 per cent), partying the night away (22 per cent – we’ve all done it!), ticking something off the ‘bucket list’ (13 per cent) or finding love (7 per cent).
What’s your story? Drop us a line in the comments below with a song, artist or album which either inspires you to travel or reminds you of a wonderful adventure.
Change is as inevitable as warm days in summer. Some choose to make the most of the day and head to the beach, or somewhere cool. Others just choose to complain about the heat, all the while making themselves ‘hot under the collar’. Some decide not to even let it bother them.
Whether or not you like change, sometimes it happens anyway. You can embrace it and transition or put your head in the sand and see what happens. Others seek change as they are sick of the status quo and want to let go of monotony.
Many of my clients share these predicaments. Some are looking for change in their career. Others have had a divorce thrust upon them and they’re not sure how to pick up the pieces. Some just have an emptiness inside and are not sure how to feel good anymore.
Here are some strategies I suggest to help make positive change.
What’s your vision?
A wise man once said, “Without vision the people perish”. When was the last time you asked yourself, “What is it that I want out of my life?” If you don’t know what you want, how are you supposed to get it? Asking questions is a valuable tool in the process of self-discovery.
A new life is a changed mindset. Focus on success and you attract success. Focus on fear and doubt and you attract failure. Become a creator and visualise your life unfolding exactly the way you want it to.
Plan of attack
Why do we write a list to get groceries, but don’t write a list for the important things we want from life? By writing a list of what we want, we get the ball rolling. This simple step will light the flame of creativity deep within you and fuel your imagination to create the life you want. Despite what we think or feel, our lives are shaped by what we do. By making the effort and being committed, you will increase your chances of achieving what matters most to you. At the end of your life you will be asked not what you have read, but what you have done.
Your life is like a garden
To live the life that you want, treat your life like it’s a garden. To have a beautiful garden you must watch out for weeds (problems) before they take over. You must take time to nourish the soil (positive beliefs and thoughts). Cultivate the soil (with action and effort) and sow seeds (positive habits and behaviours) so you can create an abundant garden (life). Remember your dreams are the seedlings of your reality.
Burst your bubble
Until you burst your bubble and head towards uncertainty, life will give you much more of the same. Don’t let fear paralyse you. You must reach out and soar and take some chances in life. By taking the initiative and going to places that scare you, life will open up new pathways and opportunities for your growth. It’s time to say yes to life.
About the writer Luke Sheedy is a gifted life advisor, motivator and free thinker. He combines his metaphysical talents to advise clients on their natural strengths, talents and abilities. Luke helps release what is holding you back, so growth can occur and your life’s plan can unfold naturally.
What did we do on this sunny summer’s day? We took to the skies for London’s best views in the Emirates Air Line cable car to experience the best of this beautiful city!
Here’s why you should…
London’s best views – take a ride on the Emirates Air Line cable car with us…
What’s been an unforgettable travel experience for you? We’d love to know – share with us in the comments below.
*if the video above does not play, click through on the YouTube icon to watch remotely, or find my channel, ‘theSarahBlinco‘
Welcome! We are Sarah + Cooper, Aussie expats living in the UK with our Westie dog, London. We like to inspire on how to travel for longer and to live and work from anywhere. Our most popular content here is about seeing the world with your pet, remote working & digital nomadism, and house + pet sitting. Create a global life of your dreams at any age! Subscribe to find out more :)
TLL SHOP!
Grab our NEW 2024 guides:
Master House Sitting with Our Must-Have 101 Essentials eGuide! Buy It Here
And, 7 Essential Strategies for Maximizing Your Use of ChatGPT eBookBuy it here
Also, Visit Our Amazon Storefront! Shop Here!
